Life Beyond the Veil
by MoonCraters
Summary: Sequel to 'The 7th Year' Tera and Sirius are broken up and meet again beyond the veil...will Sirius be able to forgive Sirius? With help from old friends...things could work out..
1. New Beginnings or Endings?

**Life Beyond the Veil**

-A Sequel to The 7th Year-

By

JaZzy

****

&

Kayna

Tera gasped and she leaned against the veil, her jail bars. Despite how she'd modified his memory and made him hate her she desperately loved him and she couldn't change that fact. Now she could see him beyond the veil, yet he didn't see her. Couldn't see her. The veil was all that kept them apart, that was all. But it was a long distance to be any distance away from him.

"Sirius!" she cried out in pain and joy over and over again.

But it was all to no use. The veil seperated them like a meter-thick cement wall. But, despite her deepest desire, she wanted him to live. To continue protecting Harry, James and Lily's son. Even if it meant keeping them apart... She continued to watch him duel Bellatrix.

Only one pair was still battling, apparently unaware of Dumbledore's arrival. Tera saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: he was laughing at her.

"Come on, you can do better than that!" he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room.

The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest.

The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock.

It seemed to take Sirius an age to fall: his body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backwards through the ragged veil hanging from the arch. ((page 710 from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, I just changed a few things to include Tera, sorry about that.))

Tera caught him when he fell back-first into the Domain of the Dead. He hadn't changed much from when she had last looked at him, back when she was alive. The only changes were that he was older, gaunt and laughterless, and looked livid to see her. He scrambled out of her arms and stared at her without the love they used to share. Then his face broke into a smile.

"James!" he cried, joyously.

"Sirius!" came the eager reply. Although it was un-like them they paused breifly then hugged.

"Lily," Sirius said, smiling even wider to see her. She laughed.

"Sirius!" Lexi shouted and jumped on him.

"Nice to see you Lexi," he grinned. "You too Kal," he added as Kal also came up.

Tera awkwardly, yet fully understanding why, stood outside of their reunion.

"Why's it that you all don't look the same as when I last saw you?" he asked, realizing that something was very different, yet the same, about their appearances.

"Time still affects us here," Kal replied. They all looked as old as Sirius was.

"H- how's Harry doing?" Lily choked as she looked wistfully at the veil.

"All right... He's all right," Sirius replied and his smile faded as he remembered his Godson, still out there. "But who behind here was whispering?" Sirius asked, quickly changing the subject.

"No one was whispering... But Tera was yelling, and crying, though," James replied, wondering if something was wrong in his friend's noggin. First off, he was hearing things, and secondly, though he supposed he really couldn't blame him too much, there was a beautiful girl he was ignoring who had loved him dearly at one time and he her. He would be on Sirius's side if he hadn't seen Tera by the veil, every day, waiting, silently crying, and watching her life's moments with Sirius over and over...


	2. Fights and Friends

Lily had seen Tera's wistful looks and cleared her throat.

"Hey.." Tera whispered

"Hello." Said Sirius coolly and turned away. Tera felt tears pricking at her eyelids and she walked away. Sirius felt a momentary moment of regret but he brushed it away.

"So where I am I?"

"You're in the place after death..."

"Which is?"

"We're still not sure..." replied Lily

"Sirius..why are you not talking to Tera?" asked James reproachfully, surprising everyone.

"You remember her! You remember what she did to me!" he exclaimed

"We do...but she ddi it for your OWN good!"

"My own good!"

"YES! She loved you so much...she rathered her to die than you!" burst out Lily, "She loved you! Do you know how much she watched for you? No you don't because you never talked to her!"

"Oh.." said Sirius quietly

"We're sorry Sirius, we don't want to make your first day a living hell...so.." started Lexi

"We'll stop." Finished Kal

"Thank you." Said Sirius, "But do you think Tera will talk to me?"

"She might...she's more forgiving here..." said Lily

Tera blinked angrily. She should know better than to be crying at the moment. She deserved everything bad that came her way. When she made Sirius forget everything they'd been through together and when she made him hate her she'd thrown away everything. Except for his life.

"Tera?" came Sirius's voice, uncertain.

No. It was another memory, it had to be. Still, illusion or no, an illusion was better to talk to than nothing.

"Yes?" she asked, slowly turning around. Her heart- although stopped for years now- nearly started beating again as furiously as it had in the old days of life. In front of her was no illusion but Sirius Black in the ghostly flesh and no blood.

"Um..hi" said Sirius nervously

"Hello." Said Tera quietly and without emotion.

"Well um..this is awkward."

"Sort of." said Tera smiling just a little

"I'm sorry!" they both burst out at the same time

"I'm sorry for acting..like I did..listening to James helped me reliese...that we.."

"I know...he said the same things to me." Said Tera grinning. She found it surprising she could forgive him so easily. It seemed as if they were still together.

"Well...just wanted to say I'm sorry." Sirius and he walked away. _Why couldn't i have said it? **Because you're a coward!** No i'm not **How much you wanna bet?**_ Sirius groaned as his inner voices battled.

__

Why didn't he say something esle? He wanted to...I could tell** Maybe he hates you and just felt guilty** Maybe...but..** but what? How long has it been? More than 10 years?**

__

It's actually been 20 years... _**Exactly. He's probably hated you for all of them and only came up and apologized because of what James said. **__Well... He might not... __**What makes you think that!**_

Tera sighed wearily as her mind continued to wage it's war. After awhile--humph. A while. Time didn't seem to pass here, it was like a black void, the only other thing was the curtain--Lily came towards Tera.

"Lily..." Tera began. She wanted to tell someone how she felt; it hurt so much. "I'm confused..."

"Yes. Sirius kind-of confuses me too because he's hesitant to be around you--but then again, he wasn't there to watch you for 15 years."

"It's not that."

"Oh? Uhm, what is it, then?"

"It's that I know I deserve every bit of rejection that he shows me. Even though I chose to have him hate me and I should die and he could live there's still an affection for him that makes me not want to let go..." she trailed off, not sure of how to put it into words.

"Don't worry...he'll come around." Said Lily.

"I suppose..." said Tera wistfully."

"Do not worry! With us...nothing can go wrong." Said Lily throwing up her arms.

"Don't..don't help. I want this to be his own desicsion."

"It will be...we'll just push him in the right direction."

"Don't!"

"Fine..." sighed Lily, "Come on..its resting time." ((resting time is the time of day..or night or whatever when they actually can sleep...for 2 hours...))

Tera allowed herself to be steered to the area.

2 Hours Later--

"Wake up!" said Kal yawning

"Already?"

"Yeah.."

Tera blinked her eyes and she looked around, then abruptly left the room.

"What was that all about?" Kal asked.

"Dunno," Lexi replied.

Lily turned to Sirius, who was still in the room.

"What?" he asked, noticing her gaze.

"Nothing, nothing..."

"Lily! You've been with James since 7th year! How could you be checking Sirius out now!" Lexi said teasingly. Lily just rolled her eyes.

Tera had gone to a different area of the endless black and she laid down on her back and she thought about school. School... It had always given her something to think about, school. She always had to worry about her work. But now there was nothing to do. Nothing... She never thought that she'd think this but she missed school dreadfully. Having nothing to do for 20 years could make oneself go mad... Lily looked around for Tera. Then she snapped her fingers. Tera always went to one place to think. Then she stopped herself. Tera needed time to think. Plus she needed to pump Sirius for details about her son. She went to find him. She found him sitting by himself thinking

"Hey..."

"Hey" replied Sirius

"Sirius...I was wondering if you would-,"

"Tell you all about Harry's life." Finished Sirius

"Yes please." Said Lily smiling

"Well he has two best friends...Ron Weasley and—,"

"Weasley? You mean Arthur Weasley's son!"

"Yes...him and Hermione Granger.."

"Granger...never heard of them."

"She's muggle-born now will you stop interrupting me?" asked Sirius impatiently

"Sorry." Said Lily grinning lopsidly as James walked over

"Are you pumping him for information? I thought we said we'd leave it till tomorrow or until next resting time is over!" teased James

"You know you're curious too." Lily shot back.

"You're right. Now buddy we want more." He said turning to Sirius

"In his first year he saw Voldemort sharing a body with his DADA teacher, and his deepest desire was to see his family. And in his second..."

Kal sighed slightly and she found her feet leading her to the veil. When she got there she could see no evidence that hours before people had been fighting there. Including Remus. She shook her head sadly and went off to find Lexi because out of all of her friends she didn't have anyone here either.

"Hey Lexi," Kal said as she came across her friend.

"Kal," Lexi said, as if she'd been in deep thought for a long time, "why is it that we're dead and we've seen no one else but our friends? People die every day... Why aren't they all swarming this place by the hundreds?"

"I never thought about it, really."

"I think," said Tera, who had come up behind them, "that it's because they've either come in by other entry-ways a far ways away from here, or there's a different realm for certain people. Maybe because we're such close friends fate didn't seperate us."

They all spent more time pondering it, together.

"So does that mean that," Kal began to say shakily, afraid even, "Remus might not come into the same realm or through the same entry-way?"

"Come on. Seperate him from you? The fates will have too many troubles if they did that... They'd be answering to all of us!"

Kal nodded, feeling reassured by her friends. Lily and James were listening avidly as Sirius told them about their son's life. Once he had finished there were tears in Lily's eyes and James was smiling sadly

"He went through so much...without his parents!" cried Lily

"You died to save him...and you did! You died to protect him and that gave him a sheild!"

"My little boy...he's a Quidditch player...like his dad!" said James fondly

"And a damn good one at that." Muttered Sirius, "He could kick your butt any day."

"HEY! I may not be in as good shape as I used to be, but with some fine tuning...some new limbs.. I should be as good as new."

"James...admit it. Our boy has grown up." Said Lily smiling at James' comment, "And you have grown too."

"Does my little boy have an eye on anyone?" asked James

"He's not little anymore Prongs." Sighed Sirius, "But I do hope he ends up with somebody nice...like Hermione or Ginny."

"Ginny?"

"Ginny Weasley...possessed by Voldemort in Harry's second year."

"Oh...Ron's sister. You know..it seems like us. Except our eyes are changed...you have hazel and Ginny has hazel while Harry has green...like mine."

"They'll look like us...and be as happy as us hopefully."

"But won't die as young as us." Said Sirius

Tera sighed and looked around her. All the black... The infinite space... It depressed her and it made her regret that she had not lived life to the fullest, enjoying all of the experiances it had to offer. But even though she'd already spent twenty years here... She hadn't even begun to scratch upon the surface of just how long she'd be there.

"Is it possible for us to die here, forcing us into another plane but one where we do not exist as we do now and in our former lives?" Tera asked.

"Hey, if time affects us why wouldn't war? That is," Kal snorted mirthlessly, "if there ever was a war down here."

"Do you mean that if Voldemort and his followers died and they came down here, we would have another bloody battle?" Lexi asked, sick and tired of the aspect of war.

"That's exactly what I mean..."

"So, the fun isn't over yet," Tera said, feigning cheeriness.

"What fun?"

"Why, the fun of vengeance and war."

Lily, James and Sirius walked back slowly. Talks of old times were driven from their minds. James and Lily were deep in thought about Harry. Sirius however was thinking about Tera.

__

Would she forgive me? **Probably not!** Why? **She's a woman! Women are weird!** Not Tera...she's down to earth. **Down to earth? She can't be! We're all dead!** Leave me..

Sirius sighed. Chances were Tera was still mad...so why would he make an effort? She was never going to forgive him...he didn't know Tera was thinking these exact thoughts.

Tera wandered off away from Kal and Lexi after a bit; the talk of their even further possible deaths was depressing. She was just gone when Sirius, James, and Lily came back.

"How's Remus doing?" Kal asked Sirius suddenly, as if she'd been deeply thinking about it for some time. Which she had, nearly twenty years...

"Oh, he's doing fine," Sirius said. "He taught Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts for Harry's third year, helped save my life from the dementors," he shuddered as he remembered his near fate. "He asked Harry to listen to the truth of what happened," he nodded towards James and Lily to indicate their deaths.

"I see..." Kal said, clearly imagining him doing all that Sirius had just mentioned.

"Yeah, do you know where Tera is?" Sirius asked, even though he knew she would not speak to him.

"Not a clue. Just before you came she was walking that-a-way, though," Lexi said.

"Ah. Thanks," he decided not to pursue her. How the hell was he supposed to find her down here without the Marauder's Map that only showed Hogwarts anyways?

Tera sighed and she didn't know what to do. She thought grimly about what another war when they were already dead could mean. Then another thought struck her.

__

If Kal's idea of being able to kill and die here are true then maybe that's what happened to everyone... _**Are you kidding me? Your former idea is more likely than what you're thinking now. **__But think about it. A war could have just happened and __**wait a moment before you get too carried away. What about the people that have died since then, huh? Where are they? **__Well, uh... __**Exactly.**_

Tera sighed again. She closed her eyes and she slowly remembered every moment of her Seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She also added in a few imaginations and fillers as to what happened after she left. She could clearly see no one even wondering where she was and Dumbledore not acknowledging her. Just like old times, only then she hadn't been a literal walking dead. Sirius walked aimlessly around trying to sort out his thoughts. When by fate he stumbled upon Tera.

"Oh sorry!" siad Sirius hurriedly

"Its ok...I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Our last year...I was such a nobody.."

"You were never a nobody to me." Tera chose to ignore his last words

"I was...until I made up with Lily." Sirius felt a pang as she didn't mention him but shrugged it off.

"Yeah...too bad you were in Slytherin." Said Sirius. His voice was a bit too scathing and Tera jumped up.

"You know what? Why are we talking? We clearly HATE each other!"

"You know what? I think you're right! I shouldn't have even bothered!" yelled Sirius

"Bothered to do what!" yelled back Tera

"I wanted a truce...a chance at--, never mind...you're not worth my time!" shouted Sirius and stalked away.

"FINE!" yelled a bitter Tera.

"I wish I had stayed in bloody Slytherin," Tera muttered to herself. "And I wish I had gone out with Malfoy instead. And been a Death Eater. And have my life a lot better and working for the dark side," she dismally thought a-loud. "Anything would be better than this fate... exile."

__

But what about all of the good times you had being in Gryffindor, going out with Sirius, NOT being a Death Eater and rebelling against Voldemort? _**What good times? Whenever I would have had a good time good ol' Tom, or Voldemort whoever you prefer, stepped in. And I never officially went out with Sirius, did I? And I had one or two REAL battles with the Death Eaters. **__Are you kidding me? What about the dance? You went out with Sirius then! __**And I ran away from it to take care of unfinished business. **__What about when... __**I don't want to think about Sirius right now, so bug off.**_

"Tera," Lily said, coming up to her friend, "is there any special reason as to why Sirius is fuming and you're wishing you had been evil?"

"Yes. It was due to all of my twenty years here, my life alive, and my most recent conversation with Sirius. Why do you ask?" she used a dangerous tone in her voice.

"Tera. I won't leave you alone. I thought that you missed him? He wanted to make a truce?"

"Well I don't care. I did miss him, I DO miss him. He did want to make a truce."

"Why don't you care?"

"I just don't. And I don't want to talk about it." Tera clearly cut off the topic of conversation there. Lily sighed and thought _When will she relieze that Sirius..is the best thing..._ Lily watched Tera walk away. She felt tears prick at her eyes but ignored them.

James walked over to Sirius who was muttering to himself and cursing.

"What up Pad?"

"She is being a total b!"

"Tera?"

"Who do you think?"

"Are you ok?"

"DO I look ok? DO I look as if this is the best day ever." Said Sirius sarcastically

"Can you just talk to her?"

"Talk? Talk? Do you think she WILL talk to me?"

"Give her a chance!"

"A chance for what? For a reconciliation?"

"YES! You know that you and her do...but of course you are being too stubborn!" said James standing up looking disgusted.

"Stubborn?" Sirius muttered as James walked away, "Me? She's the one.."


	3. Stuffcan't name it

James shook his head as he heard his friend's stubborn reply.

Lily shook her head at Tera's antics. _When will she learn? Even though it's barely been a day... in our old world's time that is... their precious little dispute is affecting all of us! Sheesh... can't they just grow up?_

Sirius was sitting there replaying happy moments with Tera. He got mad at himself. She was his weakness along with his friends. His family? Ha..he had none anymore. For what seemed an eternity he sat there. Lexi walked up behind him.

"Lily told me about your little fight." She said, sitting beside him.

"So?" he said bitterly

"Remember...she is and always be in love with you" Lexi said and gave Sirius a kiss on the cheek as old friends.

"Thanks." Muttered Sirius

"Remember that us, you're friends are always here too." And she walked away. Sirius pondered her words. He wasn't going to say sorry, he knew that but...he was going to talk to her. Not as a person who wanted to get back together but as an old friend. _Lets see how she likes that** Oh she'll be relieved you're gone**_

Tera was startled that James came up to her.

"Uh, is there something in particular that you wanted?" she asked, uncertainly.

"You had another fight with Sirius," he bluntly stated.

"Yeah, yeah... But I'm not going to say sorry."

"I know that. And I'm not telling you to. I was just going to say that your friends are always here for you. You know that right?"

__

No. You can't be here for me after life just like you couldn't before. You have no idea of everything I've been through.

"Yeah, I know."

"I don't think you do," James said, as if reading her thoughts.

Well, how can anyone ever be there for me? If I remember correctly the last time people were there for me I had to either modify their memories or shout at them to go away."

"Sirius knows the truth of everything that happened and still loves you, you know."

"Good for him."

"All right, I can see you don't really feel like talking. But, then again, you haven't really seemed like talking for twenty years."

"If I remember correctly then you never used to feel like talking before twenty years."

"If you're refering to Divination and our Seventh year you can forget it. I've changed since then. But, if you do feel like Sirius doesn't love you back I know just how you feel."

"What, are you gay?" Tera said teasingly, deliberately misunderstanding him.

"No," James said patiently all though his face was turning a bright red, "I mean I loved Lily for so long and she never seemed to love me back. I've been in your boat before and I know it is deffinetely not fun. So if you'd like you can get out of that boat and enjoy death, it's just the next adventure," and with that he walked away.

Sirius thought about Lexi's words. They were always there for him. He stood up and went to find Tera. He still wasn't going to apologize but he was going to be civil. He ran into her.

"Hey Tera."

"Black.." said Tera nodding but then remembered James words, "I mean Sirius."

"Remember how we kicked all those deatheaters butts?" he said laughing at the memory.

"We sure did..." said Tera smiling while she remembered

"And you stayed behind just so you could make a fancy entrance." Teased Sirius

"I did not! Malfoy had my feet!" smiled Tera

"Sure...how did he have them? He cut them off?" Sirius started howling at his own joke. Tera grinned and chuckled. Sirius was thinking _This is good! We're not fighting_.

"Oh and remember that time Lily turned the desk into a turtle and set it on James?" said Tera getting into the mood.

"Oh yeah...Jamesy is still afraid of turtles...wanna know why?"

"Sure.."

"When he was small he went to a beach and saw a turtle under a rock and he thought it was hurt, so he picked it up and it turned out to be a snapping turtle...it bit his fingers! And...then chased him...I don't know how...turtles are really slow."

"Thats it?" said Tera

"Yeah...thats all!"

"Wow...he must of been a sissy"

"Don't say that to his face." Said Sirius and at that they both burst out laughing. Tera couldn't help thinking _He looks good when he laughs._

"It was fun when we had that eating contest," Tera said, laughing at the memory.

"Yeah, and to think _you _called _me _a pig!" he teased.

"Well, I learned from the best!"

"Harr, harr. Very funny."

"I'm sorry about the dance," Tera said, on a more serious note.

"Oh, that. Ah, it's all right," Sirius said. _Man, just when I was barely able to forget._

"And I'm sorry about a lot of things."

"Are you sorry that you modified my memory?" he asked, slightly more quiet.

"Yes... **No**. I mean, I don't know! Voldemort would have killed you first if you'd stayed!" Tera said, a few tears coming to her eyes as the memory washed over her. "And he just might have kept me alive instead. I could not let that happen."

"Is that the real reason why that happened, or did you just hate me?"

"Sirius, I have never hated you. I would have had to watch you die painfully and slowly if you'd stayed. That would have been it for you and you would never have seen James and other of your friends again. If I hadn't have done that you never would have met Harry."

"Wait a moment," he sharply asked, "What do you mean by I wouldn't have met Harry? Back then you didn't know that he'd be alive!"

"I had one last vision before I woke up to find myself in chains," she answered slowly.

"... Did you tell anyone about it?"

"No."

"Could you tell me about it?"

"... Yes. I saw Lily and James in a house with a beautiful child that looked exactly like James except for his eyes. They were a sparkling emerald green, like Lily's. Then I saw Voldemort with a rat-like man. I saw the flash of green light of the most unforgivable curse coursing out of Voldemort's wand. Then lastly I saw the child in perfect contentment with you, only he was much older.

"I knew that I had to prevent Lily and James's deaths if I could, but I knew if I didn't their child would at least live and so would you. I made you all go away and I modified your memory of me because there was no other way you would have left. I tried to kill him but in the end I couldn't. As I died I remembered the child and you."

"So...you saved me to save Harry?"

"Somewhat..."

"Oh..well then I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"For being a complete jerk."

"Apology accepted."

"Do you think there's a chance...?"

"I'm not ready Sirius." Said Tera quietly. Sirius nodded and looked past her.

"Hey remember...when we almost died so many times?" he asked with fake cheeriness

"I think we had more lives than a cat!"

"Yeah...and oh we soooo hated Malfoy and Snape and you used the innate magic."

"That was sort of freaky...but funny."

"I know..Snape was like 'It burns ahh!'"

"Yeah.."

"Hey...can we use magic here?"

"I don't think so...we don't have wands.." replied Tera. Sirius nodded and they soon got absorbed in memories. Their friends watched from a distance and smiled.

"You think they'll get back together?" asked Kal who was a sucker for happy endings

"Maybe..." replied James

"Can we get married here?" asked Kal

"Maybe...all we need is a priest." Said Lily. She subconsciously started planning one of her best friends wedding.

Tera silently regretted the words she'd said but she was happy nonetheless to be with Sirius.

"Hm," Tera was thinking hard. "What doest this surface we're walking on feel like to you?"

"Wood, I s'pose, why?"

"Did you ever get the chocolate frog card _Della Yorkac_?"

"No, why?"

"I did and I spent a long time researching her because she wasn't in the book of chocolate frog cards. She worked in the Department of Mysteries and she worked with this veil there. I'd even go as far as to say she _created _it. At any rate, she was one of the most powerful Witches ever because of her wand. Olivander himself would not have been able to say what it was made of; she made it herself and she would not tell anyone what it was made of."

"This is all very interesting but-"

"It was made from wood blacker than night and inside of it was a silver hair but it wasn't unicorn. It was human."

"So she used some old lady's hair to make her wand? Yes, I can see just why she was so powerful," Sirius said sarcastically.

"But no human had hair like that. It was ghostly. In fact I'm willing to bet that she made the veil so that she could make an all-powerful wand. That wood was from what we walk upon now and the hair was from someone dead that she stumbled upon here."

"So you're saying that we could _make _wands?" Sirius asked, slowly getting the idea. "But what if that wand isn't yours? I mean, each witch and wizard has their own wand that works best for them."

"No need for worry, I assume that if you used your own hair it would work for you."

"So, we might be able to do magic after all?"

"Yes."

"We should tell the others." Just then a faint bell sound rang.

"We will...but now its resting time!"

"Oh..ok." he said and walked towards James.

2 Hours of Whatever Later 

"Wake up.." yawned Tera

"Already?"

"Yep..."

"Now what?"

"Lets just spend some time with us." Said Kal

"Sure...like old times." Said Lily.

"Just one thing...we have no--," but then James burst in.

"WE FOUND SOMETHING!"

"What?"

"A crack...big enough for somebody to fit through."

"Like..a portal?"

"Yes!"

"Take us there." Commanded Lily and James led them there. They looked through the crack and gasped. For right there in front of their eyes was...a city?

"Its a city!" exclaimed Lexi

"A city? In the land of dead?"

"Wow...this is big." Just then a ghostly figure walked past and they jumped. It stopped and peered through.

"FABIAN!" yelled Lexi and the ghost looked at her

"Lexi?"

"Fabbi! How do we get there?" she asked

"Why you just walk into the crack."

Lexi took a step forward and disappeared. Kal followed with Tera and Sirius on her heels. James and Lily went last.

"Fabian Prewett?" asked Kal amazed

"Its me! Gideon is somewhere around here..."

"Where are we?" asked Sirius

"How do yout know Fabian Prewett?" asked Tera at the same time.

"Me and Fabian...we were supposed to get married...but we broke it off after we saw that we were only good friends."

"As for where you are, you're in...Muno Carth."

"Muo Cawa whata?" Tera asked, confused.

"That's the name for the City of the Dead. It is decreed that someone shall find a way through Muno Carth to the Land of the Living and live on as a ghost."

"Is that the only way to become a ghost?"

"No. Before you die if you're a witch or wizard and you fear death you may pass on this life and be a ghost and travel upon where you once trod," Kal said matter-of-factly as if she'd spent her whole life researching it. But then again, Kal knew everything.

"Is there a way back to where we just were?" Tera asked, looking at the ground which was not made out of the same black wood.

"If you could fly I'm sure that you could go back up there. But who would want to? It's dull and black and down here it's..." he pointed to Muno Carth to illustrate his point.

Tera concentrated and she slowly levitated off of the ground and little by little she ascended towards the crack they'd come through.

"Where are you going?" Sirius called up to her.

"I have to do some stuff," was her reply. With that she scrambled through the crack. Lily and James watched with wide eyes. Kal and Lexi just looked on looking only midly amused

"She'll be fine!"

"I hope.." muttered Lily. Sirius just turned away and asked

"So..this is a main ghost city? What's money? Can we get jobs? What are the--,"

"One at a time. No this is not the main city. We're actually quite small compared to Città Di Spirito. Money here is Cientos centavos. Which means 100 cents..Jobs are pretty scarce but I'm sure I could get jobs for you here. Give me some time." He said and winked. Lexi blushed a bit which Kal found amusing and Sirius found it hard to hold back his laughter

"Guess that 'just friends' isn't what you want." Mumbled Kal to Lexi who flushed brighter and elbowed Kal.

"What kind of jobs?" asked James.

"Well...you could be like me and look for people who don't know where to go or you could be a babysitter...pretty much anything...an auror too! We need to get those guys who were death eaters and cause trouble."

"Now thats like me!" said Sirius enthusiastically.

"All of the jobs I named...I could get you...and some other too."

Tera excitedly groped around for the materials to make wands. She ended up settling for carving the floor with her finger-nails. Painstakingly she took her time, perfecting everything. She didn't want to make any mistakes for fear that the wands would fail. She had fairly easily cut out with her nails a chunk of wood. Good. Now to make it slender, smooth, and hollow to permeat the strand of ghost hair.

By the time she was fairly satisfied with the current stage of her first wand a silvery pink-tinged ooze was leaking from beneath her finger-nails and three earth-days had passed. (Or seven and a half yurthai as time was counted in Muno Carth and the ghost world. One yurthai is roughly the equivilant of half an Earth day.) She shrugged indifferently and began the next stage of the wand. She began polishing it slowly and carefullly with her blood.

"Humph. Is it just me or has Tera been gone for a long time?" Sirius asked, though they all knew he cared he tried to ask it as if he were just a concerned friend.

"It's probably just because you're also anticipating the job you have to wait to get," Lily said, staring off into space.

"It's already been three days! Er, seven and a half yurthai as you guys call em... But you're probably right, Lily."

It was another two and a half days before Tera's first wand was complete and she laid a single strand of her ghostly hair in the center of her wand. She grimly smiled and although she knew her friends would be eager to meet her soon she was driven on by something to make her friends wands, too.


	4. More stuff

Lily and James stood around.

"Where's Tera! She should have been back by now!" fretted Lily

"She'll be back don't worry."

"How can I not worry?" Snapped Lily.

"Honey..you're going to get late."

"Fine..but.."

"Tera's a big girl..I mean ghost. She can take care of herself."

"I suppose..well Mrs.Prewett is probably ready for her tea time." Sighed Lily

"How can you work with those old people..all wrinkly and.." shuddered James

"James! Thats so MEAN."

"Jamesy is that you?" twittered a voice behind them

"Sheryl?" gulped James

"Sheryl?" glared Lily

"Why did you never owl me?" she asked

"Owl her?" said Lily. Sheryl seemed to notice Lily.

"Oh are you his girlfriend now?"

"Actually--,"

"Yes! Uh Lily.."

"Now who are you and why are you calling James Jamesy?" growled Lily

"Oh we dated about a year ago in earth times."

"A year ago?" sputtered Lily.

"Lily..listen to me." Pleaded James.

"No! YOU CHEATED ON ME WHEN WE WERE MARRIED FOR 4 YEARS?" said Lily and she stormed and slapped James. She ran away. Sheryl smirked

"You Bi-atch!" yelled James

"Now is that how to talk to a former girlfriend?" asked Sheryl

"I dumped you!"

"After Lily came into the picture! You just DROPPED me."

"So? And now you tell LIES to my wife?"

"Maybe I want to get back together. Lily's probably going for a divorce..she always impulsive."

It was a LONG time later when Tera was finished making the wands except for the last ingrediant. Ghost hair from the user. She wondered what had happened while she was away or what was happening now...

Sirius kicked a rock on his way to work. Or would it be a ghostly rock? Bah. Either way he was still stuck dead, Harry alive, and Tera off somewhere. They were both away from him. He kicked the rock- maybe ghost rock- furiously, as if it was the source of his problems. He wondered what could have happened if he and Tera...

"LILY!" called James in the crowded streets. He caught a glimpse of her and pushed his way through. He caught her by her arm.

"Lily..."

"James GET AWAY FROM ME!"

"Why? So you can get a divorce?"

"Yes..then you can go to Sheryl." Said Lily as her eyes filled with tears

"She lied..and can we talk somewhere quiet?" he asked quietly. They walked into the apartment that Fabian had found them

"Ok well..Sheryl was my girlfriend before you. When you said that you like me and would go out with me I dumped her. Now she's wants to get back together and has this weird twisted idea that we belong together."

"YOU DUMPED HER JUST LIKE THAT?"

"Well..yeah." said James weakly

"James..when you dump a girl you do it gently." Said Lily, "But I forgive you."

"Whew." Breathed James

"Did you actually think i'd get a divorce?" teased Lily

"Well..yeah." said James sheepishly

Tera tried to find that hole again. Where could it be? She kicked the ground in frustration, however, she regretted it, too. She hopped on one leg, clutching her other foot. But she still very carefully had the wands, incomplete though they were, and she was most deffinetely NOT going to give them up. They were going to need these... she felt it. She could also feel the pain in her foot. And the frustration about not finding the hole. And... Sirius... She shook her head firmly. They were dead now; anything that happened didn't really matter because they had already died, so what was the point? Everything was either stupid or confusing.

Lily walked into the Retirement Rooms and looked for Mrs.Prewett.

"Hello Mrs.Prewett." she said sweetly

"Hello dear...do you have my tea by chance?"

"Yes I do!" Lily said cheerfully

"Thank you..now Mr.Grewal needs his rest pill."

"I will get right on it."

ooo-ooo-Meanwhile-ooo-ooo-

Tera growled angrily and banged onto the seemingly endless blackness. Somebody appeared just above her.

"Tera?"

"Yeah..who wants to know?" she said looking up. She looked astonished as she saw Sirius' grinning face

"Me..now need help?"

"Help would be nice." Said Tera smiling. Sirius extended his ghostly hand and Tera grabbed onto it. Sirius hauled her through.

"We were worried you would never be back." Said Sirius smirking

"Aw..nice to know I'm loved." Said Tera sarcastically

"You are." But there was more meaning in his words than his voice let on.

"How reasuring." Even though Tera used a sarcastic tone she really meant it.

"What were you doing the whole time?" Sirius asked casually, even though he was burning with curiousity. That aspect about him had NOT changed.

"Making these." Tera wearily drew out the wands that she had made, remembering her long toil over them.

"You spent all that time making _sticks_!"

"Of course not, half-wit. They're wands. You just need to insert a strand of your hair as the heart of it." Tera handed him a wand. "Ebony, 13 1/4 inches. Flexible. Insert your hair, Mr. Black."

"You sound like Olivanders," he murmered as he accepted the wand. He plucked out a strand of his ghost-hair. "Ouch! Even if I AM a ghost, that still hurts!"

"Hurry up, ninny."

"All right, all right..." Sirius inserted the strand of hair with some difficulty then he looked at Tera.

"Well, give it a wave!"

Sirius waved it and a light drizzle of fire came down before him. "Wicked..."

"Where are the others? I should probably give them theirs..." Tera said abesnt-mindedly, staring at the fire.

"Do you have to see the others _right away_? I'd really like it if we could-" Sirius stopped himself. "If you could get some rest first."

"I have to _right away_." Without thinking Tera kissed Sirius lightly before continuing on her way but as she pulled away she froze, appologetically. Sirius stood there shocked.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" asked Sirius incredously

"I'm the one who said..well..that I didn't want to get back..."

"Together." Finished Sirius, "But..have you changed your mind? Can it work?"

Tera sharply inhaled. This was what she wanted, wasn't it? Sirius wasn't alive anymore so harm couldn't befall him... Not to mention she'd been dreadfully lonely... "I want it... More than anything!" Tera admitted, looking at Sirius in the eyes. "And I no longer have anything to fear, i've ran out of excuses... But yes. I'd like it..."

"Really?" said Sirius grinning

"Yes.." Sirius swooped down and kissed Tera who grinned and used her wand to repel him

"HEY! No fair." He pouted

"Yes it is..you have a wand too."

"Oh yeah."

"We should go fine Lils and James and Kal and Lexi."

"Oh we won't find Lexi." Smirked Sirius

"How come?"

"In the time you were gone she and Fabian have seemed to get 'closer' if you know what I mean" said Sirius winking

"Ah," Tera replied, smirking as well.

"You're right you know."

"Which part? I've actually been really wrong lately."

"I DO have a wand."

"Oh, you are Merlin, aren't you? Sirius, no. NO!" Tera warned. Sirius advanced anyways with his wand in hand.

In a moment it didn't matter how much she'd protested because Sirius had, regardless, kissed her, using his wand to make it look like a romantic setting instead of a seemingly infinite blackness.

"Blegh," Tera said, wiping her mouth accusingly.

"What?" He asked, innocently.

"NO ONE does that to Tera without her say!"

"Oooh. What are you going to do now?" A certain uncertainty in his voice gave away his incomplete confidence.

"Revenge. For that AND all the times we missed out on." Tera proceeded with her 'revenge'. Lily looked up as the door banged open. She was about to glare as the older people didn't like noise. But her glare turned to a smile when she saw Lexi, and Fabian. Lexi walked over as Fabian went to see his mother.

"So hows it going with him?" said Lily nodding her head towards Fabian

"Good he's nice." Said Lexi blushing

"More..." prompted Lily

"Well...we've went out a COUPLE times."

"And you didn't tell me!" said Lily rather loudly

"Shh...I knew you would make a huge deal!"

"Soooo? You guys are going to the mixer right?"

"Mixer?" said Lexi confused

"The mixer for us...we're new here so they're holding a mixer for us."

"Aw...thats soo nice."

"Everyone's nice here.." they both turned as they saw Sirius and Tera enter with their arms entertwined. Tera fought the blush threatening to cover her cheeks. She strictly reminded herself of the wands and how she must give them to each of her friends.

"Tera-" Lily began to squeal.

"Save it, Lils. Can I talk to you alone for a moment?" She pushed Sirius away because he looked indignant to be discluded.

Lily looked around the room to double check that the elders were fine for now. She then looked at Tera questioningly while nodding.

"Why were you gone so long?" Lily demanded in a whisper in a corner.

"This." Tera held up Lily's wand. "You just need to put in your own strand of hair... And it'll work."

Lily's eyes brightened and she did just as Sirius had done. WITHOUT asking if it was a stick.

"Is this a wand?"

"Yes...I made them."

"Amazing.." breathed Lily

"Yes now I have to go--,"

"Nope..not until you tell me about you and Sirius."

"We're back together." Muttered Tera

"OH! I knew it!"

"Piffle." Said Tera

"Piffle? Haven't heard that in a loong time."

"Whatever now I have to go. I have to oh wait there's Lexi, I'll go give her, hers."

"Ok see ya later I have to go check on Mr.Eddison. I swear he thinks he's a saint."

"Bye." Said Tera and walked over to Lexi

"What is this?" asked Lexi examining the wand

"A wand..now insert a hair and..voila!"

"It works!" gasped Lexi as a sparkle of purple and blue sparks shot out.


	5. Losing Him

"Did you expect otherwise?" Tera asked. Her eyes turned into slits, as if daring Lexi to oppose her creation.

"No, matey! It's just hard to believe since there really isn't anything to make wands of here... For example, the wand polish. Come off of it! Where can you find polish here?"

Tera looked down at her hands, clenching them. "Some things we sacrifice for the greater good."

"You didn't," Lexi gasped.

Tera just nodded indifferently.

"Why would you use your own blood, or used to be blood- or- or... Dangit! Your _ghost-blood _to make them!"

Tera just shrugged as if it were meaningless to her. "Can you not feel the difference in the air? Can you not see that everyone is feeling it? A war _is _coming, mark my words. Suspicions are rank in the air, wafting off of you people."

"You people? You're talking as if you're from a different race."

"I was led to believe that I was."

"Ooh... The, uh, elf thing... How DID that work again? It doesn't make ANY sense."

Tera sighed as if it were not the first time she'd explained it. Nor the second. Part of the problem was though that she did not fully understand it either but she just had faith that whomever had told her knew what they spoke of. "My mother died giving birth to Tom. But there would have to be someone to counter Tom because later on he would be evil. Who better than another with the same flesh and blood? But my mother was dead. A dead body cannot give birth. There was an elf-friend of hers that thought he could help. He appealed to his gods and my mother's. After a long discussion- it took up a few years- a decision was reached. My mother's god would NOT give her another life so they took a different approach. Although I was still her child as well as my father's I was brought into the world by those gods. That way I obtained my elf-heritage."

Lexi gaped for a short bit. "Yeah-huh. That does NOT help at all."

Tera shook her head. "I didn't think that it would."

"Then why'd you tell me?"

"You wouldn't have left me otherwise. Sirius, stop that," Tera added as Sirius came up to her with a protective air around him. Sirius looked hurt and Lexi slinked away grinning slyly

"MS.LILY!" called a harsh voice. Tera jumped as she saw a wrinkled old man—I mean ghost staring at her.

"Sorry, my name is not Ms.Lily." Tera said politely

"Well..you'll have to do." He muttered and pulled her away. Tera mouthed help to Sirius who smirked and shrugged. Lily walked in 2 minutes later

"Where's Tera? Don't tell me you and her fought again!"

"We didn't an old man dragged her away."

"Oh great! I leave Perkins away for 2, just 2, "said Lily holding up two fingers, "seconds and off he goes."

"What's he doing to her?" asked Sirius starting to get alarmed

"Nothing..just a bit of..uh..well..he doesn't like his medecine so he try's to unload it on people. It sorta puts them to sleep." Stammered Lily, "And he knows I'll make him eat it so..he's got Tera to do it for him.."

"Great!" muttered Sirius as Lily speed-walked away. He waited a second and followed.

"Look, old man—er, ghost! I don't know _what _you're doing but can I please go now? The fate of my friends and the majority of the dead lies in my left hand." Tera jerked her arm away from the creepy guy.

"All the more reason for you to help me," he mumbled to himself.

"No," Tera firmly stated, turning around to leave.

"Tera?" Lily asked as they bumped into each other.

"Hey, Lils. This creepy man is being, well, creepy. You might want to give him something for it. He's a little—" she did the crazy sign.

Lily just sighed in relief that Perkins hadn't had a chance to give Tera the pills. The pills if given to someone who didn't need them tended to make them overly drowsy.

"Tera?" Sirius asked as they bumped into each other.

"Yes, I'm fine. That man back there was just being creepy. Do you know where Kal or James is? I still have to give them their wands." Her tone changed to a business like air.

"Uuhh…"

"Great. I've got a budding genius to help me find them. Come on," Tera laughed.

"Mr.Perkins! That wasn't very nice!" said Lily sternly

"Sorry Ms.Lily but can't you not give me medicine."

"I'm just doing my job. I don't do it I get fired." Said Lily and gave Mr.Perkins water with crushed medicine in it. He drank it and immediately fell asleep snoring.

"Finally..now to find James." Muttered Lily shedding her nursing uniform. She walked around and banged into Gideon Prewett.

"Hey Lils!" he said.

"Oh Gideon! Nice seeing you..where you going?"

"To Auror of the Dead office."

"How come?" prompted Lily

"I 'abused' my position." He laughed

"What'd you do now?"

"Well...I scared Narcissa Malfoy out of her wits and..put her in jail." He said

"GIDEON!"

"Sorry..but she was a deatheater!"

"Her husband was...Lucius Malfoy..not her."

"So thats why they were so mad when they found out." He pondered

"Did you ever think that you could be obsessing just a tiny bit over this theory of yours that those who die can die again and that there will be a great war, the likes of which non have ever seen?" Sirius asked Tera.

She glared at him. "There will be a war. A war of the ghosts. Thousands will fight, thousands more will die again this time for eternity."

"Do you want to know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think that you just want it to be like that so that you can see Voldemort or Tom again."

"Well if this was just a stupid theory that I was obsessing over and the dead cannot die again then why do the dead age? Why am I not still seventeen? Why are there ghosts whose skin is in folds over their bones that show?" She snapped.

Sirius stopped walking and he held up his hands. "I didn't mean any offence!"

"Oh yeah? Well you offended me!" She snarled, turning away on her heel from him and quickly walking away.

He sighed before proving yet again to her that he was faster. "Don't you know who you sound like?" he asked her.

"Move out of my way."

"No."

Tera gave him a glare that ought to have killed him but it didn't.

He became fed up. "You sound just like a-" he managed to stop himself before saying some fatal words.

"A Slytherin?" she finished the sentance for him, closing her eyes. Her face was a mask of fury when she opened them again.

"Well, yeah," he managed to say, retaining anger.

"Well I AM a Slytherin!" she screamed at him. She stomped away, top speed, in the other direction.

"Tom was in Slytherin too! Just look what happened to him!" He called out to her. He knew that it would REALLY make her angry. Her tangled shriek of anguish painfully satisfied him.

Sirius stood there. How was this relationship going to work?

"It won't...that's why. We're too different." he mumbled

"What won't work." asked a concerned Lily coming up behind him. "I just finished work."

"Um, nothing." said Sirius faking a smile. Lily saw right through it

"You and Tera aren't having problems again are you?"

"Of course not." said Sirius trying his best to look offended.

"Good, because I'm so happy. If you guys break up I will forever shun you." said Lily grinning and she walked or floated away

"Then you should be shunning me right now." said Sirius into the growing darkness. Both outside and inside of himself

Tera was so angry. At Sirius. At Tom—Voldemort. But she knew deep down that it was herself that she blamed. It was herself that she was furious with. It was the decisions that she'd made. But there was no going back. Ever. She leaned against a ghostly brick wall and she slumped down, tears springing to her eyes. Voices in her head whispered repeatedly, your fault. Your fault. Everything's your fault. She closed her eyes and she sat against the wall of an alley, crying.

"I'm going to lose him again," she whispered to herself. Shock flooded through her at what that would mean. But should she continue on like this she could, nay, _would _lose Sirius again.


End file.
